Scotland Yard has been accused of obstructing an independent inquiry into one of the biggest scandals in its history, which saw a man murdered allegedly as he was about to expose corrupt officers. The inquiry into the murder of private eye Daniel Morgan – found with an axe embedded in his head in March 1987 – was ordered by the home secretary, Theresa May, in May 2013.

Police promised to cooperate with the inquiry but delayed handing over any case papers for 18 months.

Alastair Morgan, brother of the murdered private detective, has accused the police of obstruction and exacerbating the pain of his family. He has fought for nearly three decades for the truth about those who killed his brother, and those who shielded them. He said: “They have delayed and obstructed the panel.”

A senior backbench MP also criticised the Metropolitan police, blaming the force for delaying the start of the inquiry. Labour MP Tom Watson said: “It is extraordinary that a case involving police corruption has taken nearly two years to yield even a single document. Even for the Met it is a remarkable state of affairs.”

“They are clearly refusing to cooperate with an inquiry that is in the public interest and has the authority of the home secretary.”

The article highlights one extraordinary event which has never really been explained:

The inquiry potentially offers fresh embarrassment for Rupert Murdoch. In 2002, the NoW placed under surveillance the head of the Morgan murder investigation, former detective chief superintendent David Cook – allegedly on the orders of an executive.

The paper followed Cook, “blagged” his personal details from police databases, and tried to access his voicemail and that of his then wife.

Why did the NoW threaten the Cook in this way? Surely not as a favour for someone within the Met. That would be a conspiracy theory too far.